ENG-1957 — Page 208

PUBLIC HEALTH

177

An important part of the Section's duties is rodent control and about 250,000 dead rats are collected each year. A pest control problem found to be of increasing importance was that of Cat Flea infestation of cats and dogs, and during 1957 the Section carried out over 100 disinfestations— considerably more than in any previous year.

Special attention was given to the elimination and sub- sequent prevention of heavy culicine mosquito breeding which occurred in a reclamation area at Chai Wan; diazinon (an organophosphorus compound) was sprayed on breeding places and enabled the infestation to be effectively brought under control.

Scavenging and Conservancy. About 3,000 persons were employed on the collection and disposal of refuse and on street cleansing, using 54 specialized refuse-collecting vehicles, four street-washing vehicles, two combined cesspit emptiers and washing vehicles, and 18 dumb barges specially constructed for the transportation of bulk refuse. A day and night street-washing service was also maintained for the cleansing of roads, lanes and footpaths, and the flushing of street gully traps.

The average amount of refuse collected rose from about 1,750 cubic yards a day to about 2,000 cubic yards a day. The method of disposal is by marine dumping on an area of foreshore which is being reclaimed at Gin Drinkers Bay in the New Territories, some five miles west of the urban area of Kowloon. Since the dump first opened in September 1955, some 274,119 square feet of land have already been reclaimed.

Only about one-half of the buildings in the urban area have water-borne sewage disposal, and the conservancy section provides for the collection and disposal of nightsoil from nearly 50,000 floors. This section employs a staff of about 1,700 male and female workers, using nine specially- designed dumb barges and eight specialized motor vehicles. The amount of nightsoil collected exceeded 62,000 cubic